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Prince Charles jokes about lycra; One bicycle commuter vs 42 vehicles; How to decapitate someone whilst riding; Female Afghan cyclists flee to Italy; Rohan Dennis leaves Ineos; Grandma rides 870 miles on spin bike for RNLI + more on the live blog

It's Will Bolton on the live blog again today.....
01 September 2021, 13:16
Potential winner of next TdF spotted at Benelux Tour

Egan Bernal won the Tour in 2019 aged just 22. A year later, Tadej Pogacar, aged 21, became the second youngest winner of the Tour, just behind Henri Cornet, who won the Tour in 1904 at the age of 19.

With the age of Grand Tour champions falling every year, could this tiny rider take victory on the Champs-Élysées in 2022? 

01 September 2021, 12:17
Grandmother who sailed across the Atlantic three times cycles 870 miles for RNLI
Credit: RNLI

Barbara Townsend, 80, from Axminster, Devon, is riding her exercise bike every day and hopes to eventually cover 870 miles - the distance from Lands End to John O'Groats.

Mrs Townsend, who has seven grandchildren, has raised £950 so far on her JustGiving page.

She started her ride on August 4th and wanted to raise the cash for the RNLI because both her and her husband, David, 84, were keen sailors and have crossed the Atlantic three times in their 42 foot ocean-going sailing boat.

She said:"The RNLI does a fantastic job, and when we used to pop over to France it was always so comforting to know the volunteers of the RNLI were there if we needed them. Fortunately, we never had to call them out."

01 September 2021, 11:34
Organisers blame combination of cash shortfall and impact of coronavirus for decision to scrap 2022 edition
01 September 2021, 10:59
Caroline Buchanan makes history by becoming first woman to land a front flip on a MTB on dirt
01 September 2021, 10:15
Afghan female cyclists escape Taliban and reach Italy
Afghanistan

A small group of Afghan women cyclists has managed to reach Italy on board a C-130 of the Italian Air Force that landed at Fiumicino (Rome) on 27th August. 

> Afghan women cycle to “make Afghanistan proud”

Six athletes are currently in quarantine, alongside a male athlete and several family members. 

However, Alessandra Cappellotto, head of the Women's CPA, said that the mission to rescue all the female riders still had a way to go. 

She said: "Of course we are happy for the women athletes we were able to rescue, but we are still extremely worried about those who are still there.

"This has been a first step, but we really hope that all the athletes will be brought to safety through the International channels.

"We are yet to cross the finish line: it’s not yet time to celebrate, but this little drop of hope in the ocean of pain and suffering still means a lot». 

"The Afghan athletes were in danger (and those who are still in the country continue to be) because they were recognisable and famous due to the national and International media coverage of their efforts for the promotion of women’s cycling."

01 September 2021, 10:01
Rohan Dennis leaves Ineos Grenadiers for Jumbo-Visma

Australian rider Rohan Dennis, 31, has announced he will be moving to Team Jumbo-Visma next year.

The two-time time trial world champion revealed today that he has signed a two year contract with the Dutch team.

He said: "I would also like to thank all of @ineosgrenadiers and it’s fans for the amazing memories over the last 2 years…sorry if I cause you guys issues in different colours next year."

01 September 2021, 09:35
How to decapitate someone whilst riding

Who wants to learn to wheelie when you could be learning how to cut someone's head off?

01 September 2021, 07:48
One bicycle v 42 vehicles

This video from @PassPixi is a great reminder of why we should all commute by bicycle.

In the clip the cyclists casually rides past a very long line of cars, vans and buses while lots of very bored motorists looking enviously out of their windows.

01 September 2021, 07:34
Prince Charles 'jokes' that 'getting into lycra is the hard bit' after meeting group of cyclists
Prince Charles (licenced on Flickr by Dan Marsh under CC BY-SA 2.0)

 

So, a story doing the rounds this morning is that the Prince of Wales joked that 'getting into lycra is the hard bit' when he met cyclists during a visit to a small Scottish burgh.

Charles previously revealed how he was once knocked down by a bus while riding his bike around Cambridge.

Charles and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, were meeting with locals in Ballater, Aberdeenshire, taking in views from the Cambus O’May suspension bridge when the Prince made the hilarious quip. 

PA report that Charles was walking around 'Petting dogs and speaking to some cyclists', when he said: “Sorry for keeping you guys waiting, I suppose our little trip has slowed you down.”

Asking each of the cyclists where they were headed, Charles then joked that “getting into lycra is the hard bit”.

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37 comments

Avatar
AlsoSomniloquism | 3 years ago
0 likes

Re: Cycling out of Context tweet

Does anyone actually know the context. Did they sneak in? Win a competition to ride in the Neutralised start? Child of one of the racers?

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SimonAY replied to AlsoSomniloquism | 3 years ago
1 like

The kid is Philipe Gilbert's son, so you got your first glimpse of the winner of the 2033 Liege Bastogne Liege

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Ride On | 3 years ago
0 likes

Nice to see HRH out on 2 wheels, but I might respectfully suggest a bike fit, he would be much more comfortable if that saddle was raised somewhat I think.

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EK Spinner | 3 years ago
0 likes

Good on the lady for putting an effort in on her exercise bike and persuading folk to hand money over to a very worthy cause the RNLI, (which shouldn't need to be done as it should be publicly funded as should the Mountain Rescue Service)

BUT a pedantic point of order, she has not cycled 870 miles on a bike that doesn't move - its the laws of physics and all that kind of thing, she has put in an effort, she has turned the pedals she may have a recorder/app/calculator that says she has done 870 "somethings" but they ain't miles  1 

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Gkam84 | 3 years ago
1 like

One thing that Charlie did do for my village yesterday, brought traffic to a standstill, that was good....except when you have to be somewhere. I was "escorted" to the cashpoint because there were hoards of people and his bodyguard cleared me a path. Haha. angel

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brooksby replied to Gkam84 | 3 years ago
4 likes

Gkam84 wrote:

One thing that Charlie did do for my village yesterday, brought traffic to a standstill, that was good....except when you have to be somewhere. I was "escorted" to the cashpoint because there were hoards of people and his bodyguard cleared me a path. Haha. angel

Why was someone storing up people?  3

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hawkinspeter replied to brooksby | 3 years ago
4 likes

brooksby wrote:

Gkam84 wrote:

One thing that Charlie did do for my village yesterday, brought traffic to a standstill, that was good....except when you have to be somewhere. I was "escorted" to the cashpoint because there were hoards of people and his bodyguard cleared me a path. Haha. angel

Why was someone storing up people?  3

Soylent Green isn't cheap, you know

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hawkinspeter replied to Awavey | 3 years ago
5 likes

Awavey wrote:

https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/dereham-cyclists-anger-over-hit-and-run-dri...

I don't get why the police aren't pursuing the driver for leaving the scene of a collision. Surely that doesn't require much in the way of disputable evidence?

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AlsoSomniloquism replied to hawkinspeter | 3 years ago
3 likes

I assuming "as it was the caravan that hit her, the driver was unaware of the collision so did not need to stop" is the excuse used there. 

What I don't get is how a "decision maker, experienced in road traffic matters, has concluded the evidential tests have not been met to satisfy criminal offences relating to this collision". If someone passed a cyclist and took them out with something they were towing, charge them with careless driving. Look at where her body and bike fell, she wasn't in a wrong position. I'm assuming the other cyclist was her "training" partner, surely his account should have been used as evidence. Yet CPS or someone in the Police Force decided they weren't even going to try. 

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hawkinspeter replied to AlsoSomniloquism | 3 years ago
2 likes

AlsoSomniloquism wrote:

I assuming "as it was the caravan that hit her, the driver was unaware of the collision so did not need to stop" is the excuse used there. 

What I don't get is how a "decision maker, experienced in road traffic matters, has concluded the evidential tests have not been met to satisfy criminal offences relating to this collision". If someone passed a cyclist and took them out with something they were towing, charge them with careless driving. Look at where her body and bike fell, she wasn't in a wrong position. I'm assuming the other cyclist was her "training" partner, surely his account should have been used as evidence. Yet CPS or someone in the Police Force decided they weren't even going to try. 

Except that there is an eye witness that saw the driver stop

https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/dereham-cyclist-knocked-over-in-hit-and-run-7940276

Quote:

Her friend James Wooler was cycling behind her at the time and saw the whole thing.

He said: "We were travelling at about 18mph.

"The car towing the caravan overtook us, and then the caravan swerved into the side of Helen. She ended up sort of trailing it with her body. As it pulled ahead there was nowhere left for her to go and she just collapsed into the road. I called the ambulance immediately.

"Around 100m ahead I could see the caravan had stopped. Someone stepped out the car towing it and began walking towards us.

"But a minute later I looked back up and the caravan was gone."

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brooksby replied to hawkinspeter | 3 years ago
3 likes

Checked if something had fallen off the caravan, confirmed that nothing had so continued on their merry way.  Wasn't looking for the fallen cyclist at all, I'd imagine surprise

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AlsoSomniloquism replied to hawkinspeter | 3 years ago
6 likes

So even more that it should have gone to court with eye witness statements and let the Judge/Jury decide. Why is one eye witnesses account not good enough but the drivers "sun in the eyes/ hit a deer/ didn't see them as no hi viz/ how am I supposed to know what the caravan has done" excuse means no prosecution can be proven. 

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Secret_squirrel replied to AlsoSomniloquism | 3 years ago
1 like

AlsoSomniloquism wrote:

So even more that it should have gone to court with eye witness statements and let the Judge/Jury decide. 

Agree.  Time for a cycling body that aggressively runs private prosecutions to shame the CPS into doing their job, an RSPCA for cyclists if you will. 

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Bungle_52 replied to Awavey | 3 years ago
2 likes

Yet another example of why I no longer cycle without a camera.

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joe9090 | 3 years ago
7 likes

Gotta give a little kudos to the old parasite for getting on a bike and getting on with it...

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check12 | 3 years ago
1 like

One would have thought one's saddle wouldn't be too low when one set off cycling, orf with the saddle height setters head!

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Daveyraveygravey | 3 years ago
2 likes

Re - overtaking cars stuck in a jam.  I did a lovely 100 k ride on Sunday, past Lewes and then headed for the coast.  There was a road closure just before the point I wanted to cross the A27, which sent me on a detour...that popped me out on the A27 at Wilmington, almost 2.5 km from where I had wanted to cross this road.  The A27 is never a nice road to ride along; there are sections with a cycle lane alongside, but not at Wilmington.  But luckily for me, there was a set of temporary traffic lights back at the place I had wanted to cross the road, and the queue of cars waiting to get through them just reached where I was, so I set off on the white lines, pulling back in every time a burst of cars going the other way appeared.  There was a motor cyclist doing it too; I let him lead the way until he chickened out for some reason.

A bit later on, this was repeated at Cuckmere Haven,  I passed another line of traffic and got to the lights as they went red.  A car ahead of me went through and I followed him because it meant I had a head start on the climb the other side, and the following traffic wasn't on my tail until near the top of it.

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peted76 | 3 years ago
1 like

Methinks the era of Team Sky/Ineos is well and truly over now. It's been a good ten years to be fair  1

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Zebulebu replied to peted76 | 3 years ago
7 likes
peted76 wrote:

Methinks the era of Team Sky/Ineos is well and truly over now. It's been a good ten years to be fair  1

You may well be right... But I don't think a TT specialist with waning powers, who has no hope of ever beating Ganna, and who could have an argument in an empty room leaving in his early thirties is necessarily evidence of it 🤣

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Compact Corned Beef replied to Zebulebu | 3 years ago
0 likes

Sorry, where did Ganna place at the Olympics?

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Awavey replied to Compact Corned Beef | 3 years ago
1 like

1st, with a gold medal, and a world record...or dont the track cycling events count   3

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TriTaxMan | 3 years ago
14 likes

And still people will complain about the cyclist filtering through the traffic. 

No amount of telling people that if the unneccesary car journeys stopped traffic would go down.  In a certain soical media site I reminded someone that statistics put 38% of journeys by car in the UK are under 2 miles, and that if even half of those were walked or public transport the number of cars on the road at peak times would be greatly reduced.... the great motoring public came back with 

  • surely there must be somwhere that sells lentils within walking distance (I'm guessing they think cyclists are vegetarians)
  • What are you supposed to do if you have kids (get them cycling too)
  • People don't just jump in the car and drive for a mile or two and go home (obviously they have never seen outside schools at dropping off time)
  • How can you bring shopping back from tesco (in a backpack if you are cycling or in a bag if you are walking)
  • leave your bike at home and stop annoying people on the road (so I'll just jump in my car to get to work then and add to the traffic)

They come up with any excuse not to get out of their cars..... and this is the problem that any form of active travel suggestion faces.

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AlsoSomniloquism replied to TriTaxMan | 3 years ago
9 likes

They would also be complaining on "bloody cyclists weaving in and out" instead of mentioning, "bloody cars, hugging the kerb" or "bloody cars, hugging the centre line".

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brooksby replied to TriTaxMan | 3 years ago
6 likes

TriTaxMan wrote:

They come up with any excuse not to get out of their cars..... and this is the problem that any form of active travel suggestion faces.

Rather than just admitting that they don't want to exercise.

Many people's experience of 'active' travel is sofa -> car -> takeaway counter -> car -> sofa.

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jh2727 replied to brooksby | 3 years ago
6 likes

brooksby wrote:

TriTaxMan wrote:

They come up with any excuse not to get out of their cars..... and this is the problem that any form of active travel suggestion faces.

Rather than just admitting that they don't want to exercise.

Many people's experience of 'active' travel is sofa -> car -> takeaway counter -> car -> sofa.

You mean sofa -> laptop -> deliveroo -> front door -> sofa

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brooksby replied to jh2727 | 3 years ago
4 likes

jh2727 wrote:

brooksby wrote:

TriTaxMan wrote:

They come up with any excuse not to get out of their cars..... and this is the problem that any form of active travel suggestion faces.

Rather than just admitting that they don't want to exercise.

Many people's experience of 'active' travel is sofa -> car -> takeaway counter -> car -> sofa.

You mean sofa -> laptop -> deliveroo -> front door -> sofa

You're right: I was thinking about what it was like in the Before Times...

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markieteeee replied to jh2727 | 3 years ago
5 likes

I've just been in a safer streets consultation meeting and when the data for the increase in cycling locally was displayed, two people asked if the stats took account of the 100s of new deliveroo cyclists in the area.  Apparently they don't count. They asked if food deliveries by bike could be taken out of the statistics. They like their takeway arriving sooner yet object to the mode of transport being recognised because there were so many of them.

One of the two subsequently asked a question about how businesses were supposed to deliver in traffic calmed streets and LTNs.  They couldn't see that the 100s of deliveroo couriers, they had previously been banging on about, showed that greener modes of transport can be quicker and more efficient and were already demonstrating this in the very streets where they claimed no such thing was possible.  

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joncomelately replied to markieteeee | 3 years ago
1 like

Might be interesting to see the percentage of food delivery company journeys that are actually by bike. The handful of times I've used Deliveroo or Uber Eats, it's turned up in a car! There are one or two noticeable guys on bikes who always look like they're putting in a shift when you see them out and about but I have no idea how many unmarked cars are also involved.

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markieteeee replied to joncomelately | 3 years ago
1 like

In my local area, all deliveroo, uber eats and similar are by bike  - maybe as it's so densely populated with many restaurants and fast food places in close proxity. I've never seen any in other modes of transport.  There are some independently delivered ones that come by moped though (including my favourite Indian). I've never seen any by car.

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